Worth It
by Whatsername Stardust
Summary: Rachel is the Belle of Broadway. When a ghost from her past reappears, what will she do? Future!Finchel T for safety
1. The Belle of Broadway

A million things were running through Rachel Berry's head as she walked towards center stage to step under that bright spotlight and take her final bow. Adrenaline pumped through her veins, and her grin was no "show face". She was genuinely beaming out at the full house of people. She took a sweeping bow. People were clapping cheering and leaping to their feet. This moment was everything she could have ever dreamed. No, it was better. The curtains swiftly closed and her one of her co stars, and current closest friend, rushed and hugged her tight.

"OH my lord! Rachel you STUNNED tonight. I've never seen you so fierce! I mean, you're always great. But tonight you were like, in outer space!" Rachel smiled and hugged Tori tightly.

"Thanks, Tori! You were pretty on fire tonight yourself. That high note you hit in the last number? Oh my goodness! Perfection." Tori grabbed her wrist.

"Come on! We should get out to the closing night meet and greet. They'll all be clamoring for your autograph, Miss Berry. You'll be beating those boys off with a stick!" The two women ran, giggling and high off the rush of the stage, to the back door to go to the line of people waiting for the cast members. Right at the front, in the VIP section, were Rachel's dads.

"Dad! Daddy!" she rushed to them and hugged them tightly, and accepted the huge bouquets of red and purple roses they handed her.

"You did great, pumpkin." Leroy told her, grinning at his baby girl.

"As good a Fanny as Barbara herself! With a Berry twist, of course!" Hiram rubbed her cheek affectionately. Rachel thanked them, arranged dinner plans for the next day, and then turned to the crowd. She and Tori walked down the line, with the other cast members, signing programs, stopping for pictures, and talking briefly to the occasional friend or reporter. Rachel was positively glowing. After she had graduated from McKinley, she attended the prestigious performing arts program at Julliard and after graduation began ruthlessly auditioning for anything on Broadway. She landed a chorus part, then next a small part, and her third role she started hitting the big ones. She was Maureen in a three night Rent revival. Then she landed Elphaba. And by some miracle of show business, she was cast as her ultimate dream role. Single cast as Fanny Brice in a one month long run of Funny Girl. She'd called everyone she knew, even Finn whom she'd barely talked to since graduation, though they considered themselves friends, and told them the news. Now here it was. Closing night. She was exhausted but exhilarated. And while she would be glad to have time to rest, she was also heartbroken it was over. What seemed like an eternity later, she and Tori reached the end of the line.

"Hey, wanna crash at my loft tonight?" Tori grinned at Rachel and proffered her arm and rose an eyebrow expectantly. Rachel nodded, and they started towards where they could catch a cab, when someone shouted at them.

"Rach! Rach, wait up!" Rachel's eyebrows shot up at the sound of her old nickname…. It couldn't be…she turned, and it was. Her eyes widened and Tori looked at her, puzzled.

"…Finn? What are you doing in New York?"

"I had to see you rock it on stage at least once, Rach. This has been your dream forever. We're close friends, I wanted to make an appearance." He handed her a bouquet. Daisies. He would still remember she loved yellow daisies. She gave him a hug.

"thank you, Finn. It means a lot. When do you fly back to…LA? Or is it Berkeley now?"

"Not for a week. Figured I'd see the sights, maybe go to some gigs at clubs, coffeeshops, see if I can scope any talent." Finn was an up and coming producer, and a drummer in his own band.

"It's been awhile. We should have lunch. Not tomorrow, but Monday?"

"Sure! Here's the number of my hotel. I'm in… oh man. What room am I in?" he rummaged through his pockets. "Oh! Room 408. Call me sometime and we'll get specifics. You must be wrecked. You were flawless though, Rach. We're all proud of you. I'm proud of you." He hugged her again and walked to his rental car and drove off. Rachel laughed.

"I wonder how he managed to forget I have his cell number?"

"Who was that?" Tori had become extremely confused during Rachel and Finn's short exchange.

"I'll explain at your place." She linked up with Tori again. "In the mean time, let's find a cab, stop at that 24 hour kosher deli, and head home for the evening."

And with that they managed to hail a cab and head off into the glamorous gleam of the New York night.


	2. Slumber Party Reflections

Rachel and Tori were sitting cross legged on Tori's plush peach carpeting, munching on pita chips and chocolate ice cream. Shortly after starting college, Rachel had realized that her vegan diet was taxing her body, and she needed the extra proteins and minerals in dairy and the like. So she had given up veganism, though she didn't eat meat.

"Okay, so who was that dude? Spill, chica." Tori implored through a bite of ice cream.

"We dated. Back in high school, we dated. And god did we love each other. He was always there, nice to me when no one else was, even before we dated. But the second time we dated, I found out he was lying about being a virgin, he'd slept with this girl named Santana. And it crushed me. So while we were fighting and almost broken up, I made out with my ex, who was also Finn's ex-best friend. The problem was Finn's ex Quinn and slept with Puck while dating Finn, and gotten pregnant. And told Finn that it was his, even though she'd never had sex with Finn, because she was the president of the chastity club. Anyway, so then we broke up, and I was heartbroken. And by senior year we were both sort of friends again, and we talk every once in awhile. He's the first person I call when I get a role. I guess some part of me wonders what we could have had still, you know?"

"So THAT'S why you never date! Wait…Rachel. Are you STILL A VIRGIN?" Tori squealed with laughter and Rachel blushed furiously.

"It's not like I have time to date! And I'm not exactly the random sex type, am I?"

"No, that's true. So do you still, like, love him?"

"I don't really know. I guess I…. Oh who am I kidding. Yeah. He's literally the nicest person I ever met. And I'm glad he's in my life as a friend. He'd never take me back, and I don't have time for a relationship. Especially long distance. But some people are just built to only truly deeply love once, you know? And I'm just one of those people." Tori nodded thoughtfully, and twisted her own engagement ring. Rachel stretched an yawned.

"We should sleep. I have dinner with my dads tomorrow." Tori nodded at her.

"Night, Miss Berry." Tori laughed and sashayed to her room.

"Night, future Mrs. Paulson" Rachel wiggled her eyebrows and flung herself onto the spare bed in the living room. She dreamed about spotlights, and gold stars, her name in lights and on Broadway marquees. And, for the first time in years, she dreamed about Finn.

When she woke up the next day, sunlight was streaming through Tori's gauzy curtains. She stretched and looked at the wall clock. Just before noon. She must have been more tired than she thought. She rose from the bed, flicked on Tori's coffee pot, and went to wake the blonde from her slumber. She sat heavily on the foot of Tori's bed and bounced.

"Toriiiiii." She sing songed. "Wake up Miss Popular!" Rachel had coined the nickname Miss Popular for Tori after she had played Galinda in Wicked alongside Rachel's Elphaba.

"God that high F of yours could wake the dead. What time is it?"

"Noon. Coffee's being made as we speak."

"Ugh. Well thank Sondheim for that." The two girls ate scones and coffee and vegetarian bacon for breakfast, while reading the reviews of last night's performance. Two or so hours later, Rachel gave Tori a hug and called a cab to go home, call Finn and get ready for her celebration dinner with her dads.

With her hair set in curlers, Rachel picked up her phone and dialed Finn.

"Hullo?" he asked.

"Hey, Finn. It's Rachel."

"Hey Rach!"

"So where are we going tomorrow?"

"Ummm. I was thinking maybe Serendipity's, at like one thirty?"

"That sounds great. Shall we just meet there?"

"Yeah sure. That works."

"Alright, see you then, Finn!"

"Can't wait, Rach!" she was puzzled briefly as she hung up. Can't wait? Finn wasn't usually that excitable. Oh well. She proceeded to start pulling curlers out.

Dinner went wonderfully, She had her dads talked like they hadn't in ages. People had actually recognized her, and asked for pictures. She was just glowing the whole evening. And the food was superb.

In what was beginning to be a distressing pattern, Rachel dreamed about Finn again that night.


	3. Two Great Loves

The next morning, Rachel's alarm went off at ten am sharp. She ate a light breakfast and did a little house work. Then scanned the reviews in the arts magazines, marked a few, and checked her emails. By the time she was done, she needed to simply jump in the shower, dry her hair, get dressed, and leave. Down on the street she hailed a cab with what Tori's Brooklynite aunt called "the finesse of a born New Yorker". Telling the cabbie where to take her, she fidgeted a bit with her plaid skirt. Despite the advice of her fellow actors and her company's publicist, she had yet to outgrow her fashion sense. Skirts, knee socks or tights, sweaters and flats or mary janes were still her staples, though her formal and business wear had evolved to suit the high paced New York atmosphere. The cab stopped at the café, and she tipped him and paid her fare before stepping out. She scanned the tables for Finn. At six foot three, he was easy to find. Eventually she spotted him under one of the umbrellas in the corner of the patio area. She walked over and sat down.

"Hey, Finn."

"Rach! Still dressing in your classically Berry manner I see." He grinned at her.

"And I see that, ever the cool kid, your wayfarers are still glued to your person." She smiled back. The pair easily fell into an easy pattern between banter and catching up on their lives. Eventually though, conversation waned and drifted towards high school.

"Look, Rach. There's something I have to tell you. I didn't just come to your show last night because I wanted to be a good friend. I miss you, Rach. I miss everything about you and us and who I am when I'm with you. I never stopped loving you. And some part of me knows you never stopped loving me either. We weren't meant to just be friends, we weren't meant to be enemies or acquaintances. We were meant to be a couple. Give us a chance. Give me a chance. Come to Berkeley. Your company has a branch at the repertory there. Or even the ACT or Curran in San Francisco. We could be something great, Rachel. Let us try." And with that Rachel started crying. Finn looked startles and scooted his chair around to hug her.

"I can't, Finn." She whispered. "I just can't. Don't get me wrong. I do still love you. I always have, and I probably always will. But… Broadway is my dream, Finn. It's my career. And as Lady Gaga is known to say, my career isn't going to wake up one day and decide it doesn't love me anymore. It won't leave. I love you Finn. More than I could put in words. But I can't sacrifice my dream, my passion, my career, to a maybe. Someday, if you still want me in a few years, we can try. But right now I can't give all this up. I'm so sorry, Finn." She kissed him just once, gently, and got up and walked away. He didn't call after her. He knew she was right. He couldn't ask her to throw her life away for him. Even if she did love him. So maybe someday they would be all they were meant to be. But for now they would have to live separate lives.


	4. Missing

Rachel Berry was still taking Broadway by storm. She'd earned rave reviews as Mrs. Lovett in Sweeny Todd. Praise had been nearly never ending for her twist on Penny in Hairspray. And she had just done it again with the role of Wendla in Spring Awakening. Sometimes, well a lot of times, she thought of Finn. But she never doubted that she had done the right thing. As much as she still loved him, she would not and could not give up the career she had worked so hard for.

It was closing night of Spring Awakening, the final curtain call. She and Melchior took their bows hand in hand and then watched as the curtain slipped shut. Melchior, who was really a young man named James smiled sweetly at her.

So. Rachel. If you're not too busy, I was wondering if you'd like to get together sometime?"

"I'm sorry, James, but no. Why not give Tori a chance? She's ha d a thing for you since you played Link Larkin."

"Really? I never thought I was her type."

"Well, you are. Go get her." Rachel smiled at him as he walked off. She spied on them out of the corner of her eye while she walked towards her dressing room. This show's meet and greet would be next week, inside the theater, due to a sudden snow storm. She opened the door of her dressing room and was shocked to find, along with the expected roses from her dads, six dozen yellow daisies. There was a card in only one, although she knew who they were from.

_Rach~_

_Congratulations on another series of amazing parts. You deserve every one. And someday it'll be your name they call at the Tony awards. I know it. Also with the help of your friend Tori I had a little surprise set up in your apartment. Hope you like it. _

_All my love, _

_Finn_

Perplexed, Rachel looked for Tori, but she was nowhere to be found. She shrugged, figured whatever it was was probably harmless, and started the walk to her car. She pulled into the lot of her apartment complex, locked her car, and trudged through the slush to the elevators. Upon finally entering her apartment, she was greeted by even more yellow daisies. And standing in the middle of the vases of yellow flowers stood Finn, holding a single red rose.

"Before you do anything, let me explain. What you said, back at Serendipity's, it made so much sense to me. Broadway is all you ever wanted until I waltzed into your life. And if I really love you, I would never make you, or LET you leave that. I saw you tonight, Rach. And you are so talented. And beautiful. And every night I was in Berkeley, all I could think about was you. I have literally a composition book of lyrics about you. And then it hit me. Every other thing in my life I have ever wanted, quarterback, Glee club, band auditions, Quinn, you in high school, I went after. So why should now be different? What I'm asking, Rachel Berry, is if I moved here, took all my producing business work here to New York, found a new band to drum with, is if you would give us a chance. You don't need to give up a thing for me, Rachel. I want you to be happy. So here I am, the other side of the country, surrounded by flowers in your living room, asking for a chance to prove we're as great as I feel we are. I don't care about uprooting my life for you, Rach. Because you are my life."Rachel was speechless. Rachel Berry, loudmouth extraordinaire, was speechless at the words of Finn Hudson. She blinked, and before Finn could babble on about whatever he was about to break the silence with, Rachel ran through her apartment and threw herself into his arms, kissing him like she'd wanted to since they broke up. And he held her close and kissed her back and it was like they had never lost a second together.

Finn set her down and stoked her hair with one hand and fidgeted with his pocket with the other. Then, out of nowhere, he was down on one knee.

"Rachel Barbara Berry, will you marry me?" She blinked as she stared at the ring he held out to her. It was a slight gold band, with a flawless princess cut diamond on the middle, and stars cut into the band and framed with tiny pink diamonds on either side of the center stone. For the second time in five minutes, Rachel Berry was speechless.

"YES!" she squealed suddenly. She looked at the ring, only to discover an inscription that to most would seem normal and sort of cheesy, minus the strange capitalization, but meant the world to Rachel. _Love is a Journey._


End file.
